It really sucks when a band sends you a copy of their new record and you somehow misplace it in your office (which, in your defense, also contains almost 2000 other CD mailers). It sucks even more when the band cheerfully sends you another copy of the record, and you lose that one too. And it really, seriously über-sucks when you finally give up on physical media, download MP3s of the record, crank 'em up in the car on the way to work and realize that you absolutely love the record -- and that you really should have spent the last few months telling people about it.

Well, better safe than sorry.

The record in question, obviously, is If Not Now, Then When? -- a ferocious five-song barrage that'll take you back to the days when "post-punk" was an era, not a record store section. Remember how magical it was twenty-odd years ago, when the first few punk bands climbed unsteadily out of the three-chord primordial soup, discovered more complex songwriting techniques and ultimately revived an ancient art known as "singing"? The Beatings don't seem old enough to remember that heady era, but it's clear that someone raised them right -- that, or they studied like mad. Whatever its source, their knowledge pays off big time in rip-roaring opener "Feel Good Ending": it's the best song Hüsker Dü and Mission of Burma never wrote. For a measure or two, the stabbing lead guitar line hints at minor key doom 'n' gloom, but that mood is quickly dispelled by a rollicking, ramshackle melody, full of subtle melodic shifts and deep-running currents. Drummer Dennis Grabowski pummels his kit like a Mega-Millions lottery winner who feels like flaunting his riches and has just been informed that crash cymbal hits cost ten bucks each. The vocalist -- guitarists Tony Skalicky and Eldridge Rodriguez both sing, but I'm guessing this is Skalicky -- barrels through his lyrics with sardonic glee, slamming into his couplets with a sort of wide-eyed melodic fury. This is the sort of song that makes previously non-musical people buy guitars and drum kits and give that "rock" thing a go.

"Stockholm Syndrome Relapse" is an entirely different animal. If the title alone isn't enough to hook you (kids, look it up!), the moody midtempo groove and subtle string accents should do the trick, Those falsetto vocals may be a hard sell, but Erin Dalbec's sexy whispers balance the equation. People who want to hear a little Interpol in the chorus will do so -- let them -- but when Dalbec joins in later in the song, the effect is more Pixies than Paul Banks... thank heaven.

At first, "Pretty Faces" shows signs of being the EP's dud, settling into a comfortable, borderline-pastoral guitar figure. Then, perhaps a minute in, Grabowski jacks up the tempo; suddenly the song is much faster than it needs to be, unless... Yep, something else is coming -- a noisy, billowing electric counterpoint that shoots its tendrils off in every direction. From there, "Pretty Faces" effectively dissects the slow/quick/slow and loud/quiet/loud dynamics, first flowing energetically into each line, then ebbing again in time for the punctuation, leaving little noisy bits of sonic flotsam swirling through the mix.

By the time you reach "All Dead Heroes", you'll wonder if the band is deliberately fucking with your expectations, The song's harrowing forty-second percussion intro/classic rock lead-in all but promises an over-caffeinated "Bela Lugosi's Dead", but delivers a pop anthem in its place. It's a noisy pop anthem, and Grabowski gets his usual kit-punishing workout, but you won't be over your skis here unless you're scared of ride cymbal.

The EP closes with its title track, a previously unrecorded staple of the Beatings' live set, and a timely reminder of how much the group has evolved. Once you get beyond the intro's comparatively simplistic melody and unexpectedly venomous lyrics, you'll be tossed into a caustic, blustery pop song. Even here, the band's fierce energy and melodic sensibilities shine through, but it's a rougher package, tarted up with reverb and screamy vocals.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with cutting loose -- and even at their most overtly earnest and youthful, The Beatings never sink to abrasive emo-isms -- but when the EP's other songs achieve such a stylish mix of polish and passion, it's hard not to perceive "If Not Now, Then When?" as a lesser work. You'll want to focus on "Feel Good Ending", "Stockholm Syndrome Relapse" and the others -- they embrace post-punk's exploratory zeal without getting wrapped up in the handful of buzz-traits that helped transform it into a trendy cipher. You may not hear If Not Now, Then When in your favorite nightclub or overpriced clothing store, but you'll hear it on your stereo two years from now, when the cut-out bins are full of Bravery and Bloc Party CDs.

I'm going to end this review by giving you the message I can't give to my six-months-ago self: get off your ass and find this EP now. The Beatings are prepping a full-length for late this year/early next year, and if it fulfills If Not Now's promise, you're going to be hearing a lot more about them. Why not get there first?

Epilogue: Two days after writing this review, I found the CD.